Girls Lead


​What is Girls Lead?

Girls Lead is a Peacemaker Resources program with the mission to empower and equip young women to have positive relationships with self, others, and community.

This program provides a one-day, community-based leadership experience for middle school and junior high girls, in conjunction with an organization and volunteers from their community.  Girls Lead is a youth leadership program that is community-driven and is designed to cultivate an inter-generational connection with local women leaders.

​The Girls Lead model has been successful because it emphasizes personal development as the first step to leadership and stresses the importance of a community connection in utilizing learned leadership skills. The girls will experience leadership through building their strengths, and participating in team-building and goal setting activities.  
It’s easy to be inspired – it’s another thing to put new skills into practice.

The leadership experience will help girls in their early teens become aware of their strengths and values. In knowing their unique strengths, girls will be motivated to set and work toward achieving personal goals. In the long term, the participants will be able to recognize where they can each make a difference in their communities.

How does the program work?
Girls Lead is sponsored by a community service organization or agency. The sponsor organization provides space for the programming, snacks and a meal, and two or more women volunteers to assist with the Girls Lead day camp.  Program staff from Peacemaker Resources facilitate and lead the day camp activities.   

Each day camp curriculum includes:
  • Personal leadership activities
  • Team-building activities
  • Community service learning planning
  • Celebration of the day’s achievements

The Day Camp is designed to be fun and consists of hands-on activities that will keep the girls engaged all day long.

The focus of our current Girls Lead day camp is to encourage girls to discover their personal leadership strengths and the strengths of their team members. Girls become aware of the strengths of their community and explore opportunities to lead a service project that honors the strengths of community members.
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Additional day camp themes are under development at this time.

Intended Outcomes
Research shows Social Emotional Learning (SEL) programs improve academic scores and graduation rates, reduce stress and improve life outcomes in a number of different areas. Girls Lead programming is built on the 5 Core Competencies of SEL as set by the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL).  
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  • Self-awareness – accurately assessing one’s strengths and limitations.
  • Self-management – motivating oneself and setting and working toward achieving personal goals
  • Social awareness – to recognize family, school, and community resources and support
  • Relationship skills – communicating clearly, listening actively, cooperating
  • Responsible decision-making – the realistic evaluation of consequences of various actions, and the well-being of self and others

Interested in bringing Girls Lead to your community?
Girls Lead  is hosted by a community service organization or agency.  Community centers, Women of Today, Boys and Girls clubs, Jaycees, schools, tribal entities and churches are just a few examples of groups that can potentially host a Girls Lead day camp in the community. Community sponsors, for example businesses, other service groups, and personal donors can assist community organizations to fund the Girls Lead day camp.
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Currently organizations in northwestern Minnesota are invited to contact [email protected] to find out more about hosting a Girls Lead or Girls Lead on the Go! day camp in their community.
Girls Lead On the Go!

As communities become more familiar with the program and volunteer leaders feel equipped to step into a larger role, there is an opportunity to build capacity and skill set through attending a Girls Lead On the Go! Facilitator's training.  The Girls Lead curriculum is taught to the volunteer leaders and they are provided with a Facilitator's Guide and day camp outline. Following this workshop, leaders have the materials and skills needed to lead and promote  a one-day Girls Lead on the Go! day camp in their community.  In addition, volunteer facilitators have access to the Peacemaker Resources set of supplies for the day camp activities.